Excise officer Raizada is accused of falsely implicating the President's adopted sons in a case and extorting money; investigation yet to begin.
Kawardha. The Baiga tribal community has leveled serious allegations against Abhinav Raijada, the excise officer posted in Chhattisgarh's Kawardha district. Representatives of the community say that poor villagers from the Baiga community, considered the President's adopted sons, are being implicated in false excise cases. It is alleged that cases involving mahua liquor are being filed by showing more liquor than the actual quantity, and money is being demanded from the villagers in the name of action.
Even after the complaint was lodged by the society, no formal investigation has been initiated by the senior officials of the Excise Department, due to which anger is increasing among the victim families and the people of the society.
The victim, Sagni Baiga, alleged that she had three or four bottles of mahua liquor in her house, but during the investigation, the amount was increased to 15 or 16 bottles. She said, "I was made to sign a blank paper. Since then, my husband has been missing and is untraceable."
Similarly, Sarottin Baiga alleged that 10 to 12 bottles of liquor kept in her house were shown as 40 to 45 during the investigation. She claimed that she was charged 25,000 rupees in exchange for protection from the case, but even after this, her husband was not released.
Representatives of the Baiga community allege that cases are being filed arbitrarily against many villagers in connection with mahua liquor. They say that in some cases, villagers were first made to sign blank papers, and then serious cases were fabricated based on those documents.
Kamu Baiga, district president of the Tribal Development Council, alleged that some officers of the Excise Department are constantly harassing the Baiga community. He said that villagers are being asked for sums ranging from 10,000 to 20,000 rupees in the name of avoiding action or reducing fines.
The community submitted a memorandum demanding the suspension of the concerned officials, an impartial, high-level investigation into the entire matter, and departmental and legal action if the allegations are found to be true. The Baiga community says that many poor families are facing financial and mental hardship due to the alleged action. They have appealed to the administration for swift justice.
